Tag Archives: fusion 360

Product Review / Comparison : CAD/CAM vs. Kipware® Conversational [ Fusion 360 vs Kipware® Conversational ]

FACT : Using a CAD/CAM system to program the simpler, everyday workpieces is costing you money.

FACT : CAD/CAM OVERKILL is real … and is costing shops in labor hours and dollars.

FACT : CAD/CAM was NEVER designed to be a G code generating tool first and foremost … it is a design tool first and foremost. If you’re not designing … DUMP the CAD and KEEP the CAM with Kipware® conversational.

FACT : Fusion 360 may be cheap … but even FREE software can disrupt efficiency and productivity if you can’t produce G code … and chips … in a timely manner.

Here’s the proof :

Get the low down on real world software that can save you time and money … Kipware® conversational … at our website : www.KentechInc.com

Kenney Skonieczny – President
Kentech Inc.

New Fusion360 Pricing … Here We Go !! [ If you’re not designing, DUMP the CAD … KEEP the CAM with Kipware ]

As of this writing … end of September 2018 … the eventual has become the norm. We all knew this would happen … and the constant uptick of pricing has begun for  Fusion 360 users.

An announcement has just been made the pricing level of Fusion 360 for the will jump from $310 to $495 … and that is PER YEAR !!  That’s not a forever, buy it once and your done price … that is $42 / month or $495 per year.

We all knew this would happen. Once they got users hooked using their “cheaper”, introductory pricing  … got you to do all your drawings and store all your data in their environment … that they would eventually have to increment up pricing to keep making profits and stay ahead. And it is happening. And as any business owner knows … it will keep ticking up little by little … forever.

If you’re not designing …

DUMP the CAD … KEEP the CAM !!

Look let’s be honest … if you are designing and creating new products … Fusion 360 is probably a good deal. IF ON THE OTHER HAND … YOU ARE LOOKING TO GENERATE G CODE FOR MACHINING … KIPWARE® CONVERSATIONAL IS A MUCH BETTER ALTERNATIVE … PERIOD. CAD/CAM was NEVER designed to be a G code generating tool first and foremost … it is primarily a design tool … made especially for users designing and creating new products on a constant basis. Thus … everything starts with a drawing. If you are looking to primarily create G code to machine a workpiece … why do you need to start with a drawing. It is time consuming (wasting) and requires CAD skills which may preclude some good chipmakers from even getting involved with the programming process. For a shop owner … limiting the people who can create CNC programs means limiting efficiency and limiting output … limiting profits !!

Take a look at the video below … agree ??

Go Simple … Go Real World … Get Productive !!

One of the things that Fusion 360 touts with this new pricing is that the new subscription will include ALL Fusion 360 “features”. Great … they just added MORE COMPLEXITY to the package. If you are trying to create G code for say a simple turned part … you’ll have to weed through menus for live milling, Y axis, and others. WHY ??

If the video above makes sense to you … we encourage you to think twice about jumping on the Fusion 360 ever-increasing bandwagon and to take a deeper look into what “shop floor programming” and Kipware® conversational can mean for your shop … your productivity … your profits !!

Get more info HERE at www.KentechInc.com

Kenney Skonieczny — President
Kentech Inc.

Fusion 360 [ and Why CAD/CAM Companies JUST DON’T GET IT !! ]

CAD/CAM companies and developers JUST DON’T GET IT !!

If you are a machinist and / or job shop CNC programmer … this article is for YOU !!

Let’s start at the beginning …

CAD/CAM was originally designed “back in the day” for the design and manufacture of COMPLEX aircraft components. And for that complex programming … yes it is indispensable. But once all those aircraft manufacturers had their CAD/CAM … the market started drying up and the CAD/CAM companies looked to diversify … to look to push their products into other areas … like everyday manufacturing. Gotta keep developing markets to keep those BIG profits coming in.

BUT the reality is …

CAD/CAM was never designed to be a PRIMARY G code generating tool … it’s a design tool first and foremost … thus the need for a drawing to program even the simplest part. This fact can lead to a number of job shop / everyday manufacturing / G code generating issues … such as :

  1. Removing good chipmakers from the manufacturing process. If you can’t draw … you can’t program.
  2. Slowing down the programming process … have to always create a drawing first.
  3. Adds unnecessary complexity to the programming process … CAD/CAM packages are so complicated with cryptic icon driven menu systems making it necessary to weed through tons of unnecessary menus to accomplish even the simplest tasks.

What’s CONVERSATIONAL about this ???

This is a screenshot for creating a RADIAL SLOT in the “latest and greatest” conversational app out there … REALLY ??? Complex … icon driven … too many options that complicate things … overkill !!!  Yes pretty pictures maybe … but come on … pretty pictures doesn’t mean easy or efficient … be real.

Compare it with the KipwareM® RADIAL SLOT menu below … simple … easy to use … yet still contains tons of powerful machining options.

Developers who are NOT MACHINISTS … who DON’T LIVE IN THE REAL WORLD … design software that is OVERKILL !!

The alternative ????

Shop Floor Programming … plain and simple.

Shop Floor Programming pretty much describes the programming that is done on 95% of job shops around the world every day. Simpler … everyday parts. A shaft with 3 diameters … a groove … and a thread. A round milled pocket with a bolt circle at the bottom. A simple 2D contour for a metal bracket.  You get the picture … you know the workpieces I speak of.

For the above … why on earth would I need to waste my time to create a drawing to create some G code ???

Shop floor programming is the answer. A simple tool that was designed specifically for G code generation … not design primarily … G code generating primarily.

Some machine tool builders will tell you that their cryptic, archaic “conversational” control is “shop floor programming”. But the fact is that their CNC control is NOT a PC … and doesn’t have a PC’s capabilities or user-friendly-ness. AND … it’s specific for their machine … and is locked to the machine. You gotta program in the shop … at the machine … and what about all your other machines?? There’s a BETTER alternative …

Kipware® CONVERSATIONAL CNC Programming Software

Load Kipware® conversational CNC programming software on a laptop … BOOM … conversational, fill-in-the-blank programming for EVERY machine in your shop. Program at the machine … in the office … at home on the couch with a beer … wherever !!

Kipware® CONVERSATIONAL CNC PROGRAMMING SOFTWARE is the ESSENCE of Shop Floor Programming.

Pull up a round pocket fill-in-the-blank screen … answer some questions … BOOM … G code.

Pull up a bolt circle menu … answer some questions … BOOM … G code.

Pull up a shaft menu … enter some diameters and lengths … BOOM … G code.

You get the picture.

If you agree with the facts outlined here …. if you’re fed up with having to go down the CAD/CAM road where CAD/CAM companies FORCE you to go … 

DUMP the CAD … KEEP the CAM … click HERE to DO IT !!

Kenney Skonieczny
President — Kentech Inc.